A Thing Called Love
by coldsummerhotwinter
Summary: Strung within a dilemma never faced before, she must decide - protect what is dear to her and walk away from the love of her life, or succumb to temptation and risk it all? It was a test of priority. What, or rather who, was she willing to give up?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Gakuen Alice.

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"Mikan, Mikan! You'll never guess what happened today!" Sumire practically squealed on the top of her lungs across the phone.

With my face scrunched up, I held the phone for about five seconds before answering. "Sumire? Is that you?" I grunted.

"Yes! Now guess!"

Even without actually seeing my best friend, I could already tell she was beaming from ear to ear.

"Sumire... You know that I don't want to play this game if I'll never be able to guess." I groaned over the phone.

"Okay, okay. I…" she paused for a moment before continuing. "Got myself a new boyfriend!"

New boyfriend? Now it was my turn to pause. "Oh really? Who's the unlucky guy?"

Totally ignoring the hint of sacarsm in my words, she said slowly and steadily, probably wanting to make some sort of dramatic effect to what was soon to come out of her lips. "Na-tsu-me-Hyuu-Ga." she stated.

Natsume Hyuuga? That name sounded oddly familiar. Wait, isn't he-

"So, Mikan. What 'dya think? Is this a dream come true or what?" she grinned, interrupting my thoughts.

I allowed her words to sink in. "Natsume Hyuuga? **The** Natsume Hyuuga who goes out with a different girl every week?" I said, my voice gradually growing louder. "Sumire! Have you completely lost your mind? That jerk's a playboy!" I almost yelled.

Natsume Hyuuga. I didn't really know much about him, heck, I've never even seen the boy before. It's amazing how I've never actually met the guy, considering how popular he is, or so I've been made to believe. Apparently, he has an unbeatable record of having the most number of girlfriends in the school. Ugh, just the thought of it filled me with disgust.

"Don't call him that! You don't even know him. He's actually really sweet and romantic. Oh God, speaking of romantic, you have no idea how romantic he is, Mikan. Just the other day, he gave me a box of really expensive chocolate! And then he told me how pretty I was and that he couldn't keep his eyes off me." She tried convincing me.

"He's a playboy, Sumire. Playboys will do and say anything to get in your pants. I may not know him well, but I know enough to tell you that he's no good for you!"

"But he said I was different. That I wasn't like any other girl he's ever dated. I could tell he was telling the truth. I could see it in his eyes." She proclaimed.

"Honestly, would you listen to yourself right now? And here I thought you actually manage to snag a good guy for once. Someone who wouldn't break your heart like all the other assholes. You know, you're always so blinded by all that romantic crap to see things for what they really are. Stop living in a fantasy, Sumire!"

Wow. Where did that come from? I'm not usually like that. There was a sudden silence after that. Okay, so maybe I was a little harsh on her. I was just doing what any good friend would do…right? I didn't want to see her hurt again like before. I was about to hang up, thinking she was already gone until she finally burst out.

"There you go again! Acting all Miss-Know-It-All. You think you're some sort of genius just because you're always top in the class, don'cha? Well, news flash, Mikan Sakura, you've never even been in love before so don't come here judging me or him.", she spat. "I called you up 'cause I thought you'd be happy for me. I guess I was wrong." She continued before slamming the phone down. Next thing I heard was line going dead.

I sighed and placed the phone back to where it belonged. You'd think her words would have cut me right open, but it didn't. But that didn't mean it didn't stay with me.

What she said was true. I've never been in love before. Never. Not even once. And believe me when I say, I've never actually experienced a "heart thump" (as Sumire likes to call it) before whenever I'm with a guy. Call me abnormal all you want, but that's the truth.

I twirled a lock of my hair, as I thought about the word "love". What does it mean to be in love? I've seen it in movies and even read about it in a couple of books. Hell, I even hear about it from Sumire and other girls from class almost everyday. You'd be surprise to know that it seemed to be the only thing they were capable of talking about. But even so, they always looked so happy when they chatter on about love. From crushes, to boyfriends, to kissing, to sex. The list could go on forever.

It was like there was this...sort of joy that seemed to light them up every time the subject came to "love". And a part of me always envied that.

As I looked at the clock on my bedside table, I saw that it was already time for bed. Deciding I'll settle things with Sumire once I see her in school tomorrow, I laid on my bed, with my eyes gazing out the window. Feeling the glow from the moon touching my skin, I let out a deep yawn before drifting to sleep.

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The next day started out like any other day. Or so I thought.

Humming along the road as I walked to school, I took my own sweet time enjoy the scenery that surrounded my vision. It was still early after all. Inhaling the fresh morning air, I smiled to myself. The beautifully painted morning sky, the sounds of birds chirping almost musically, the sun slowly rising, signaling the start of a brand new day, the-

My thoughts were immediately interrupted by the screeching sound of a car nearby. I turned my eyes towards the alarming sound, curious to know what was going on. My eyes widened as big as saucers as I saw a sliver Mercedes Benz heading right towards me, and seeing as it was coming at me with the speed of over 80 miles per hour (which is actually really dangerous considering the small narrow road it was on), I was pretty much a goner.

Screaming loud enough for the whole neighborhood to stir up from their sleep, I brought my hands to cover eyes, almost by reflex. Fear gripped me by the neck as I waited for the impact that was soon to knock my brains out.

Images of me on my death bed with family and friends gathering around me saying their last goodbyes flashed through my mind.

No. Not like this. I can't die like this. I have a family to take care of. A blinded-but-will-soon-get-back-to-her-senses friend to think of here. One who was going to get her heart broken if I don't stop her in time.

I was too absorbed in my thoughts on dying that it did not occur to me that there was no impact.

Wait a minute. Aren't I suppose to be on the ground right now, with blood spilled all over my body and intestines sprawled out of all to see? I couldn't have ended up in heaven that fast, right?

I summoned every bit of courage in me to opened my eyes. When I did, I was shocked to see that the car was mere inches away from completely ending my life. My limbs turned into jello and I fell to the ground. The driver, who I noticed was just a teenage boy, rushed out of his car and was instantly by my side.

"I'm so sorry! Oh God. Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere? Oh god, Oh god, Oh God.", he alarmed while looking around my body for any bruises. I could only stare at him with my face paled as his eyes went around my body frantically. I was too traumatized, too glued to the ground to utter a single word.

After searching and finding not a single scratch on me, he plunked down beside me. "Thank God." he sighed.

We just laid there. None of us moving nor speaking. Finally, after what felt like the longest five minutes in my life, I managed to hoist out a whisper. "I…have to go."

How I was capable of standing on my own two feet right at that moment shall forever remain a mystery to me. I got up and started staggering towards the school again, clutching my school bag so tightly I thought I was going to puncture a hole right through it. My legs wobbled as I tried my level best to control my body. But before I could even take my third step, a hand landed on my shoulder and froze me dead on my tracks. My breath caught up in my throat as I stood there still shaking, consequence of the aftershock that happened just moments before.

"Where are you heading? I could give you a ride."

I really didn't know what to say. This guy almost killed me and now he was offering me a ride? Taking up his offer wouldn't exactly be the wisest thing to do, but as I laid my options in my head, I told myself it's either I climb into his car, or I walk and be late for school. I decided it was for the best if I just got into the car with him. I could barely move my limbs at the moment, let alone walk for another mile.

So with a nod of my head, the stranger led me to his car. After settling and strapping (you can never be too safe) myself onto the passenger seat next to him, he started the engine. With a vroom sound exiting the car, we were off on the road again.

It must have been a miracle when I was able to calm my uncontrollable nerves by the first minute of the drive. Relaxing in my seat, I turned to look outside through the window.

"So where are you going? School?"

I shuffled in my seat as I shifted my gaze to the boy. It was only then did I take in the fact of how incredibly good looking he was. His black raven hair was tousled and appeared as though it was designed to shoot up at every perfect direction possible. He had the most beautiful, enticing, red crimson eyes that could pierce through any girl's heart within a second. His skin was so smooth and toned that I could not unearth even the slightest blemish. And together to complete his whole look was a gold earring with a red emerald on his right ear that matched the color of his eyes. To say he was perfect would have been the understatement of the year. This male looked like a Greek God. If not, better. I was too mesmerized by his God-like features to realize that I had already started drooling. Literally.

When he did not get a respond, he brought his eyes off the road to get a good glance of me. I instantaneously turned to the window to wipe off the slight drool that had leaked out and hide my now burning cheeks. "Uhh…yeah. My school is right around that corner. The one at the end of the road" I squeaked.

"Wait, you're from Alice Academy?"

"Uhh…y-yeah." I stammered, not quite knowing where this conversation as heading.

"I go there too. How come I've never seen you before? What's your name?" he wondered.

"Mikan." I let out softly. Thinking he might not have heard me, I tried again. This time clearing my throat, I said with a little more confidence, "Mikan Sakura."

"Mikan Sakura. It's nice to meet you. I'm Natsume…Hyuuga." He grinned.

Time must have stopped right at that moment because I never in a million years would have expected the guy with unimaginably good looks, who almost tried kill me, who then offered me a free ride to school, and not to mention the one to be seating just inches away from me, to be none other than _the_ Natsume Hyuuga.

Only three words were constantly running through my head.

**What. The. Fuck.**

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Chapter One, fineto! Hope you had an enjoyable time reading it as I had writing it. This is the first fanfic I've ever written in my life...so...

**Review please?**

Let me know if the story is good or if it isn't, tell me where or how it can be improved. :D

I'll try to update as soon as possible. :)


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer : I do not own Gakuen Alice. If I did, why on earth would I be writing fanfics about it when I can mess with the real thing? *wink*

Thanks to all those of you who reviewed! ;D

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At the very mention of his name, I felt an almighty thud, as though a bowling ball's landed hard in my chest.

Wait a minute, what's he-

Did he just-

That can't be-

This can't possibly be-

My thoughts started buzzing like a swarm of bees. This is… Natsume? _Hyuuga?_

My jaw dropped in disbelief as I stared at the boy, seemingly for the hundredth time that morning. I was too bogged up by the new discovery that I did not realize my trembling hand had already found its way to the door handle, seizing it with my dear life. Okay, calm down, Mikan. Remember what grandpa always said, panic will get you no where except crying and a big wet patch on your skirt. So as I took a moment to come back down to reality, I ended up contemplating with myself on whether it would be a good idea to just burst the car door open and jump out.

My heart was juddering in my chest as I unfastened my seat belt.

I'm gonna do it.

Oh God, I swallowed. Okay, on a count of three.

**  
One.**

**  
Two.**

**  
Th-  
**

"We're here."

My head twisted to his direction. _What?_

"Huh?" I uttered unintelligently.

"We're here." He repeated.

Only then was I dumbly aware of the fact that we've finally arrived at school. _So much for my heroic plan_, I thought. He swerved into the parking lot and pulled in to an empty spot. Turning off the engine, he turned to me. The black streaks of his bangs slightly covering his eyes, he gazed at me for a second before curving up his lips into a smile.

"Looks like we-"

Before he could even finish his sentence, I yanked the car door open with such force anyone would have thought I was the next Terminator, and bolted right out, without bothering to close it. I trotted down the driveway as fast as I could. I could hear him yelling for me from the car to wait but I didn't so much so as glance behind me as I continue stalking towards the school building. I almost tripped over an empty can at some point but thankfully managed to regain myself from any embarrassment. Heads were turning towards my direction, and I could hear vaguely people whispering, "What up with her?" and "Is she on steroids?"

Ignoring their weird stares, I dashed into the girl's restroom and shut the door firmly. Making sure there wasn't anyone else in the room, I darted towards the sink and briskly on the tap, letting the cold water run. The crystal clear flow rushed swiftly from the shiny silver faucet and into my cupped hands as I splashed the water on my flushed face, letting it string down to my chin. Gripping the sides of the sink with both hands, I stared long and hard in the mirror, taking in my reflection.

Just take a deep breath, Mikan. This is just a dream. One crazy little nightmare. There's really nothing to be worried about. For all you know, you could still be in bed doing those ninja kicks you do. There's no way this could be real. I mean, almost getting run down by a car? Not to mention the one with my best friend's new boyfriend slash _the_ Natsume Hyuuga driving it? _Pfft-_ What are the odds to _that_? I laughed self-consciously.

And even if I'm _not_ dreaming, this has got to be some silly joke or prank, right? For all I know, Ashton Kutcher could be hiding somewhere right now with cameras all around, just waiting to jump out and shout "You're PUNK'D!" at my face.

Laughing nervously, I managed to cackle "Okay, you got me. You can come out now." only to get a sheer silence from the empty room as a response. Realizing that I was the _only one_ in the girl's toilet, I flustered.

This can't be real… _can it_?

I even went to the extent of pinching myself just to see how real the situation was. Wincing at the pain, it finally dawned on to me.

This _is_ real. This is _very, very_ **real**.

I let out my breath -one I didn't even realize I was holding- before getting lost in my thoughts again.

Wait, what am I even scared of anyway? So what if it's real? It's not like it's the end of the world. This could just be an aftershock of the accident this morning. Yeah, that's right, the aftershock of the accident. And the fact that Natsume was the one in the car is a pure coincidence. I'm still alive and walking, that's what matters. There's nothing to go crazy about.

I forced a smile at my reflection, hoping to convince myself, until I heard footsteps from outside heading towards the door. Just as my eyes flew to the door, it cracked open and a group of girls with faces covered in make up walked in, chattering about the latest sale that was going on. _Tch, typical_. As soon as their eyes caught me alone with face still dripping wet, they gave me a look of disdain as if to say _"Ugh, what's that filthy thing doing in here?"_ before continuing their ranting.

I took a paper towel and wiped my face dry, wanting to get away from the group as soon as possible. That was until I heard something that made my ears perk.

"Hey, did you hear about Natsume's new girlfriend?"

"Yeah. Some girl name Sumire."

"Uh-huh. I have the same chemistry class with her. She's kinda plain looking, nothing special. Heh, It's obvious Natsume's just using her."

"I bet twenty bucks they'll be done in two weeks."

"No way... One week, tops!"

"Oh c'mon, they won't even last by the end of tomorrow." One of them said before the whole bunch broke into laughter.

A blind rage like fire swept over me and I had a sudden urge to pound each and everyone of their clown painted faces with my fists. Unfortunately, the bell rang and we had to get going to our classes.

So slinging my bag over my shoulder, I walked out of the girl's restroom only to be greeted by a voice calling out my name.

"Mikan! Mikan!"

My eyes roamed around the hallways wondering who and where that voice could have come from, when suddenly, Sumire appeared from behind me and grasped my shoulder.

"Hey, I've been looking all over for you. Where were you?"

"Sorry, I was in the girl's toilet." I explained.

An awkward silence soon came upon us as we kept silent for a while, both looking everywhere but at each other. Two of us knew what needed to be said next but sadly, found a hard time doing so.

Deciding I'll be the one to break the ice, I took a deep breath.

"Listen, about yesterday… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said what I did." I apologized.

"No, you had every right to. I should be the one apologizing. I said some pretty nasty things to you when all you did was try to look out for me."

I raised my eyes from the ground only to meet her green, emerald ones. I smiled and she kindly returned it.

"So…friends?" she asked, poking out her pinky finger. I chuckled at our little symbol of friendship we made up way back when we were kids. Taking it in my own finger, I curled it around and held it.

"Yeah, friends." I grinned before pulling her into a hug. In our embrace she murmured, "Don't worry, Mikan. I know what I'm doing."

Letting go of her, I managed a smile, hopefully enough to show her I was convinced, although deep inside me was still burning with hatred for the boy.

So putting the past behind us, we hurried on to our class together, with Sumire droning on and on about her new love and me nodding my head and occasionally letting out an "Oh wow." or a "Seriously?"

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The bell rang a couple of hours later signaling it was time for lunch break. In mere seconds, the hallways were jammed up with students heading towards the cafeteria. I found Sumire amidst the horde, and walked with her. We stroll towards the cafeteria, both of us joking and laughing about our Biology teacher, Jin-Jin (yeah, we gave him a nickname too) who has a habit of picking his nose when he thinks no one's looking.

All of that stopped the moment we stepped foot in the cafeteria because all of a sudden, a pair of strong arms from behind wrapped themselves around Sumire's waist. I almost yelped thinking it was some pervert trying to 'get some' from my best friend. The mystery man rested his chin on her shoulder and started nestling her neck. Sumire was giggling profusely telling the boy to stop it, although it was obvious she was enjoying the attention.

My eyes were darting back and forth at both of them. I could only stand there stoning at the whole display with my jaw hanging wide open. What on earth is she _doing_?

When he was finally satisfied from devouring her neck, he lifted up his gaze. And to my horror, a pair of ruby red eyes instantly met mine. He looked taken aback as he slid his arms away from Sumire without breaking our lock. Sumire -who thank God, finally got back down to planet earth- noticed I was still standing there gaping at them.

"Oh, Natsume! There's somebody I want you to meet!" she shrilled, dragging me towards him.

"Mikan, Natsume. Natsume, Mikan." She introduced, beaming and gesturing her hand at the same time.

"Uh… Hi. It's nice to meet you." I smiled politely.

"Hey there. Didn't we-" he replied before I interrupted.

"No. I don't believe we have." I cut in still smiling, giving him a 'just play along' look. He raised his eyebrows. Thankfully, Sumire was too oblivious to note the weirdness in our conversation.

"Hey, why don't you guys get to know each other for a bit while I go get some food?" She bubbled before ambling away, leaving me and Natsume in an uncomfortable position.

The minute she was gone, I immediately turned to him and looked at him in the eye. My smiling face immediately turned into a full blown scowl that resembled a cat who's tail has just been stepped on.

"Look, I don't know you're planning here or what your intentions are, but I don't trust you nor do I like you. So I'm going to ask you nicely now, to back off while the relationship is still fresh, and save Sumire from all the heartache you're eventually going to cause her." I said calmly but with a tinge of venom in my voice.

He stared at me dumbfounded for a second by my sudden change of expression.

"Woah. And where did _that_ come from?"

"Shut up. I'm warning you here. Leave her."

"And who are you to tell me that?" he smirked.

"That's not the point."

"Well, incase you haven't realized it yet, I have absolutely no intentions on breaking up with her."

"Oh how reassuring, Mr. Casanova. I'm sure this will definitely make it into your book of records. The longest period Natsume's ever dated a girl – **One week**." I said sarcastically.

"You don't know anything about me." He replied firmly and unruffled.

I was about to respond to that until I heard footsteps approaching.

"I've got the food. Now let's go grab us a table!" Sumire practically sang whilst carrying a tray of food.

Plastering a smile on my face, I sauntered next to her, with Natsume following closely behind.

"Sure." I replied, shooting a glare at Natsume when Sumire wasn't looking. He smirked.

'Don't say I never warned you, Hyuuga.' I thought to myself quietly.

Little did I know that Lady Fate had her own plans in mind.

Because that special day marked the beginning of a roller coaster ride I was bound to undertake.

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Sorry for the long wait, guys. But here's Chapter 2 for ya. I intend to make this story a long one… twenty chapters, maybe? Hah, who knows.

By the way, for anyone of you has no idea who Ashton Kutcher is, he's the host and producer of a reality show call 'Punk'd'. Punk'd is an American hidden camera/practical joke television series on MTV where people, mainly celebrities, are pranked.

Well anyway, I know Natsume is OOC right now… but don't stone me yet! The Natsume we all love to hate will definitely make an appearance in later chapters.

So you know what to do.

Click that little button below and **review**! It would definitely make my day. Make me a happy author now, why don't you? ;)

Happy author _equals_ Faster Updates. :D


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